Technological advances in the telecommunications and computer-related industries have provided cell phones, web phones, personal digital assistants (PDA's), hand held computers, lap tops, and other portable devices that allow for instant communication and access to information. These portable devices provide the benefit of allowing people to be connected wherever they are. A drawback to the use of cell phones, however, is that speaking on a cell phone can be a disturbance to bystanders. This is especially the case in public and other places where others generally do not want to be disturbed, such as restaurants, theaters, churches, and so forth. Similarly, using PDA's, laptops, etc. with capabilities for voice recognition and/or accessing and playing music or other audio can be an annoyance to others. Additionally, holding a cell phone to one's head while driving an automobile can be unsafe because the driver has only one hand available to operate the vehicle. Furthermore, holding a cell phone can be difficult or at least a distraction in many other situations, such as while typing on a keyboard, walking down a street or in a mall with one's hands full, while riding a bike, and so forth.
In order to provide an easier, safer, and quieter way to speak on a cell phone, there have been developed hands-free headsets with microphones and speakers connected by wires or wirelessly to a phone. These headsets enable the wearer to park their cell phone on their belt or elsewhere, and to have a conversation on their cell phone by speaking and listening via the headset. However, such headsets are typically donned and removed each time the cell phone is used, which can be a significant inconvenience. Also, such headsets must be stored somewhere when they are removed and not in use, making it more likely that the user will forget them, break them, or be further inconvenienced by carrying a case for them.
Accordingly, there remains a need in the art for a wearable audio communication device for remote use of a cell phone or other electronic device, that permits the user to easily, safely, and quietly communicate using the cell phone while engaged in another activity, without the user having to hold the cell phone in his hand, and without the inconvenience of carrying around an extra headset device, donning the headset to make or receive a call, and removing and storing the headset afterward.